zebra finches and spice finches

31 May 2009, 11:57

hi, im new to finches and i was wondering if its alright to house a pair of zebra's and spice finches in the same cage. thanks

31 May 2009, 12:50

Yeah they should get along fine. They're both boisterous species that can take care of themselves.
You may find though that the zebs will breed so fast they'll take over the cage. Spices are more likely to breed in a planted aviary with a bit of space.

31 May 2009, 13:02

thanks for the reply, so far everything is going okay, at first they were a little hostile but now they've calmed down. though the female spice finch is still a bit hostile towards the zebras. and the male spice seems like hes trying to court with her. hopefully everything goes smoothly

31 May 2009, 13:43

How big is the cage?

31 May 2009, 13:46

its about 2 and a half feet by 2 and a half feet. im actually hoping that my spice finches are actually a pair and not two males/females. is there anyway you can tell?

31 May 2009, 16:35

It's a bit difficult with spices, but I always found that with members of the mannikin family (which is what the spice finch is), often - but not always - the male can have a slightly larger/broader head and bill.
There are no differences in plumage.
I'd be surprised if the spices breed in a cage that small - you never know, though. The zebras should be fine though.
Also re the size of the cage, keep a close eye on the finches, and if they're fighting too much or appear stressed you might have to separate them.

31 May 2009, 21:51

i've only had them together for about a day so lets see how it goes in for the next couple days. if anything i'll separate them if i notice that they're stressed out. the zebra finches are fine, but the spices seem a bit on edge, and secluded to a spot. thanks for the information by the way, i appreciate it.

31 May 2009, 22:12

It's possible the spices are wild-caught, and not captive raised, and if so it's likely that they'll always be edgy and never calm down. The same problem often arises with goldfinches and greenfinches.

01 Jun 2009, 04:06

yea, so i woke up this morning to see my male zebra chasing the spices around non stop. i think im going to go back to the pet shop today to return the spices and probably pick up a pair of societies.